ITN and 02 broadcast world’s first 5G-powered advert

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ITN utilises O2’s 5G to broadcast live rugby TV ad over the weekend.

(Image credit: O2)

O2 has partnered with ITN Production’s to produce the world’s first live TV ad, completely powered by 5G. The main purpose of the ad was to showcase the capabilities of the O2 5G service before it launches later this month. 

The live ad was shown on ITV during the Rugby World Cup match between England and Argentina on Saturday. The impressive ad captured live footage of the matchday atmosphere across the UK. This was then instantly sent back to ITN studios in London, using O2’s 5G network. 

The ad could then be broadcast live, collating the footage of fans from four different locations across the country using 5G 'bonded' cameras.





A huge milestone 

Before the ad went live, Nina Bibby, O2 chief marketing officer, said: “The match will not only be an important fixture for England Rugby, it will also mark a huge milestone in demonstrating the possibilities that 5G can unlock for sports fans. Using next-generation technology, we will unite rugby fans across the country in real-time, inspiring the nation to come together in support of the team.”

Anna Mallett, ITN chief executive, added: “5G will revolutionise content creation on a global scale and enable us at ITN to react even faster to moments that affect our lives – and at the same time see us reduce our carbon footprint. We’re thrilled to bring this event to life and work with O2 on such a ground-breaking innovation.”

This was the perfect way to not only celebrate the rugby, but also demonstrates the huge capabilities of 5G. The technology is still very new, but we are already seeing live ads, and the potential for new advertising formats that 5G offers is huge.

Fiona Leake
Fiona Leake

Fiona discovered her love for investing and making money from a young age. Since then this interest has grown and now she loves writing about investing and business, and follows the 5G market closely. She is also a technology enthusiast, and so they tend to be her favourite investments.